Kula World
Kula World (Roll Away in North America and KulaQuest in Japan) is a 3D platform puzzle video game developed by Game Design Sweden AB for the Sony PlayStation, which places the player in control of a Kula beach ball. The main objective of the game is to collect keys which unlock the level exits, as well as coins and jewels along the way. The game makes use of alternative physics, changing the direction of gravity as the ball moves. Description In Roll Away, the player controls a beach ball navigating a series of cubic-grid labyrinths suspended high above various locales. The objective of each level is to collect all of the keys scattered throughout to unlock the exit. The player can also collect coins and gems which increase their score. The direction of gravity relative to an object is always downward towards the surface which the object is rested on or the ball is jumping towards. When the ball reaches a point where the surface tilts upward or downward, such as the end of a pier or on a single block, the ball can move along this change in direction and relative gravity will shift accordingly, meaning that the beach ball is always on the surface facing up and objects do not fall from their positions on the other surfaces. There are also obstacles in many of the levels, such as spikes protruding from the floor, Captivators which move around a plane and capture the ball on contact, as well as ice blocks, which propel the ball forward uncontrollably, and blocks which collapse when the ball rolls over them to leave empty space where they stood. There is a fixed time limit which is constant across every level, which the player can reverse by collecting an hourglass. Red and yellow pills speed up the timer for a few seconds while slowing the balls movement, while blue and purple pills make the ball bounce uncontrollably and stop it from shifting gravity. The player can also fail a level by making the ball jump into empty space. In addition to coins and gems, each of the main levels contains a fruit, which changes depending on how many the player has collected. When the player collects five fruits, they are transported to a bonus level where ball must touch every block, their score only counting if they succeed. There also bonus levels in secret exits on some levels which function as normal levels but once again do not count a failed score. The single player portion of the game consists of Arcade mode, which involves racking up a high score and saving progress every 5 levels, and Time Trial mode, where the player must complete each level in a certain amount of time and save points come every 15 levels and there are no bonus levels. The player's score/time for a level is added to the total on completing the level, and taken away on failure. If the players score in Arcade mode falls below zero, or above zero in Time Trial, then they have to retry from their last save. The multiplayer modes consist of Copycat, where each player must copy exactly the other players movements and adding a new step each turn, and Time Trial, where the two players compete for faster completion times. Gameplay Various elements and obstacles are introduced as one moves on to new levels, which means that the complexity and level of puzzle solving required gradually increases as the game progresses. The game involves making ingenious use of the various types of platforms and surrounding objects, from moving platforms and transporters to bouncing platforms and jumping pills. Bonus levels can be unlocked by gathering five fruits (one available in each stage). If one enters a bonus level, the word "BONUS" appears. Completing the bonus stage requires one to 'activate' all the cubes on all platforms by rolling over them. The bonus stages also become more complex as the game progresses. Points are awarded when the player collects keys, treasures, and fruits and also when they complete levels. Points are deducted if the Kula ball is spiked, captured, melted, burnt by a laser, falls/slides off or simply runs out of time, all of which require the player to restart the level - providing the score has not fallen below zero, in which case, the game ends. A two-player mode is available, with two variations of the game. A time trial and a version called "copycat". In the time trial the players take turns to determine who can complete each stage in the quickest time possible. The "copycat" version is a kind of memory tester. It involves one player starting off making two moves, and the next player then copies those moves and adds two of their own. The first player then has to copy all of the moves so far and add two more moves at the end. This continues until one of the players makes a mistake, after which the opponent is awarded a point. A move constitutes either changing direction, moving forward or jumping (either on the spot/forwards or onto another platform). Release This was one of the first games to make use of the DualShock vibration function of the original PlayStation game controllers, which induces the feel of the ground breaking, the feeling of the Kula ball about to burst, or the shock of getting suddenly captured or spiked. The game also featured an original, easy listening style soundtrack composed entirely by long-running Swedish electronica group Twice a Man. Kula World was released for download to PlayStation 3 via PlayStation Store, on 29 November 2007. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe also released a direct emulation of Kula World on Google Play for Android in 2011. Reception Kula World received generally positive reviews from video game publications. Edge praised the game for gradually introducing new challenges as the player advances through the stages, comparing the game's progression to a "good Nintendo title". However, the magazine criticized the game's lack of replay value and the multiplayer mode for not offering split screen gameplay. * See the game reviews Kula World Trivia Hardware optimisation According to this interview with Johannes Söderqvist, when Sony used an analysing tool to graph how much the CPU and texture cache of the PlayStation was being used by a game, this game was found to be using the full capacity of the hardware. This analysing tool was used to optimise Gran Turismo, but the Game Design Sweden team did not have access to it. Development Crew * Kula World PS1 Credits External links * Kula World at MobyGames